The TROUT TALEVolume 1, Issue 4 Summer 2013

The official newsletter of the Wyoming Council of Trout Unlimited

See ANNUAL MEETING, page 3

TU staffer Charlie Card earns coveted spot on Fly Fishing Team USA......Page 5

INSIDE THIS ISSUE:

By MIKE JENSENTrout Tales Editor

Another Wyoming Trout Unlimited (WYTU) annual meeting is in the books, and the meeting, held in Jackson on May 2-5 at the Hotel Terra in Teton Village, will go down as a huge success.

This year’s annual meeting was expanded to include an Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS) inspector training course that was offered by the Wyoming Game and Fish Department and held at the department’s regional office in Jackson on Thursday, May 2.

WYTU was well-represented at this all-day training session, and members in attendance were Dave Sweet of Cody, Jim Broderick and Jay Buchner of Jackson, Jeff Streeter of Saratoga, Calvin Hazelwood of Green River, Jim Hissong of Mountain View, and Mark Tesoro, and Jodi and Mike Jensen of Evanston. At the end of the training, all members passed the written exam and became volunteer AIS inspectors.

On Friday, several attendees took advantage of an outstanding fishing outing on the Snake River, and were treated to some very good fishing for Snake River cutthroat trout. The group floated from the Wilson Bridge to South Park.

“The dry fly fishing was incredible,” said Upper Bear River Trout Unlimited Chapter President Mark Tesoro. “We used Skwala stonefly imitations and the trout were eager to rise. What a great day.”

Representatives from the WYTU executive committee, six chapters — East Yellowstone, Seedskadee (formerly Flaming Gorge/Lower Green River), Jackson, Platte Valley, Popo Agie Anglers and Upper Bear River — national staffers and guests from the Wyoming Game and Fish Department were on

Annual meeting in Jackson a huge success

hand for the all-day business meeting on May 4.The council worked through an agenda that included revisions and updates

to the WYTU strategic plan, WYTU bylaw amendments, committee and leadership reports — treasurer report, coordinator report, membership updates, NLC report, conservation committee report, women’s committee report, Yellowstone Lake Project and others. Representatives from the chapters present also updated the council on the great work being done on the local level around the state.

National staffers from the Lander office, including Cory Toye of the Wyoming Water Project, Dave Glenn of the Sportsmen’s Conservation Project

n Council representatives elect new executive officers at meeting; first-ever fundraising banquet raises funds for WYTU, Jackson Hole Chapter and the Yellowstone Lake project

WYTU Yellowstone Lake Special Project Manager Dave Sweet updates council representatives on the successful work being done on Yellow-stone Lake to restore native cutthroat trout populations.

WYTU PHOTO/Mark Tesoro

NEW EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE:The newly elected officers of the

Wyoming Council of Trout Unlimited include, from left: Mike Jensen, Chair;

Calvin Hazlewood, Vice Chair;Dave Sweet, Treasurer; Cole Sherard,

Secretary; and Jim Broderick, National Leadership Council Representative

and Past Chair.

Page 2 SUMMER 2013

NOTES FROM THE CHAIRMANachieving our goals of conserving and protecting Wyoming’s coldwater fisheries and their watersheds.

On a sad note, many of you are aware we lost a good friend of Wyoming Trout Unlimited in early May. Layne Capozza, who served as vice president of the Seedskadee (Formerly the Flaming Gorge/Lower Green River) Trout Unlimited Chapter, passed away on May 4.

Layne’s talents as an accomplished fly angler, custom fly rod builder and champion of conservation efforts will always be admired and remembered. Our thoughts and prayers are with Layne’s wife, Elizabeth, his stepdaughter, Haley, and the rest of his family during this difficult time.

Haley currently serves as the chair of our youth committee, and will be involved with the upcoming Trout

Unlimited Teen Summit that will take place in late July in Kelly, Wyoming.

I have to serve up even more kudos to our Wyoming Coordinator Scott Christy for his excellent work on the first-ever “Tie One On” Fundraising Banquet, held, in conjunction with the annual spring meeting in Jackson. Congratulations to Scott and his hardworking committee from the Jackson

Hole chapter and other volunteers for putting on a first-class event. Everyone did a fantastic job, and the end result is some serious funds raised for the council, the Jackson Hole chapter and the Yellowstone Lake Project. Well done. Well done, indeed.

I’ll look forward to seeing many of you in Laramie this fall on November 2 and 3 for our fall meeting... cheers!

Mike Jensen currently serves as the chairman for WYTU and is the editor of the council’s” Trout Tale” newsletter. He and his wife, Jodi, have three terrific kids, a beautiful granddaughter, and a couple of hunting and fishing labs. They make their home in Evanston. Mike finds that his work really gets in the way of driving his drift boat and his fly fishing adventures and misadventures. E-mail Mike at mjensen@uintacountyherald.com.

MISSION:Conserving and protecting

Wyoming’s coldwater fisheries and their watersheds

WYOMINGCOUNCIL OFFICERS:

Mike JensenChairman

Calvin HazlewoodVice Chairman

Dave SweetTreasurer

Cole SherardSecretary

Jim BroderickNLC Representativeand Past Chairman

Scott ChristyWyoming Coordinator

schristy@tu.org

WYOMING CHAPTERS:n Casper-Grey Reefn Curt Gowdyn East Yellowstonen Flaming Gorge/Lower Green Rivern Jackson Holen Laramie Valleyn Little Bighornn Platte Valley

n Popo Agie Anglersn Upper Bear Rivern Upper Green River

OFFICE LOCATION:250 North 1st Street

Lander, Wyoming 82520Phone: 307.332.6700

Fax: 307.332.9299

ONLINE:www.wyomingtu.org

© 2013 Wyoming Council of Trout Unlimited

The TROUT TALE is a quarterly newsletter of the Wyoming Council of Trout Unlimited.The deadline for submission of information, photos and content for the Fall newsletter

(October, November, December) will be September 1, 2013. Please send any and all contributions for the Fall issue to newsletter editor Mike Jensen at: mjensen@uintacountyherald.com. The

TROUT TALE is available through e-mail and online on the council’s website at: wyomingtu.org

Mike Jensen, Newsletter Editor • Scott Christy, Wyoming Coordinator

Greetings, fellow Wyoming Trout Unlimited members, staffers, friends and supporters. Here it is. My first column as your newly-elected chairman of the Wyoming Council of Trout Unlimited. Thank you for the support and trust you have given me. Honestly, it’s humbling and a bit nerve-racking.

Without a doubt, there’s been some truly talented and capable people in this position previously — Jay and Kathy Buchner, Dave Sweet and Jim Broderick. Needless to say, they’ve left big shoes to fill. And I’m pretty sure my feet aren’t that big.

Like Jim has said on several occasions over the past couple years, “I don’t want to break it.” Amen, brother. That certainly goes for me, too.

Congrats to the council’s newly-elected executive committee members — Calvin Hazlewood, Dave Sweet, Cole Sherard and Jim Broderick. I can’t thank each of you enough for your willingness to serve, and I’m looking forward to working with each of you. You are a great group of passionate and talented volunteers.

In addition, I want to thank Wyoming Coordinator Scott Christy for the outstanding job he does leading Wyoming Trout Unlimited and for his tremendous support.

It goes without saying that WYTU is an outstanding organization, made up of outstanding and talented individuals — volunteers and staffers, alike — and I’m looking forward to working with as many of you as possible during the next two years of my term as chairman.

My goal is to get out and visit as many chapters and volunteers around the Cowboy State as possible. I also invite you to contact me anytime via phone call or e-mail. You can reach me on my cell at (307) 679-4297 or e-mail me at: mjensen@uintacountyherald.com.

While I’m handing out lots of “thanks,” I want to acknowledge the hard work and passion of Wyoming Trout Unlimited’s coordinator, Scott Christy, our executive council committee members, chapter leadership, members, volunteers and our terrific Wyoming-based national staffers — Cory Toye, Dave Glenn, Beverly Smith, Steven Brutger, Kathy Purvis, Jeff Streeter, Nick “Smiles A Lot” Walrath, Tommy Thompson, Shauna Sherard, Walt Gasson, Hillary Walrath and Charlie Card (our adopted WYTU staff member). Because of all of you, we are moving this organization forward and

SUMMER 2013 Page 3

ANNUAL MEETING, continued from page 1

and Wyoming Energy Coordinator Steven Brutger, gave presentations on their respective work around the Cowboy State. Greg McReynolds, a TU staffer from Idaho, also gave a presentation on the Sportsmen Ride Right program.Dirk Miller and Paul Dey from the Wyoming Game and Fish Department attended the meeting and gave the council updates

on work being done by the department specific to fisheries, partnerships with WYTU and in-

stream flows, as well as funding challenges the department is facing since the recent legislative session did not pass the proposed license fee increase.

Elections were conducted during the meeting to install a new executive committee for the next two years.

Those individuals elected were: Mike Jensen (Upper Bear River Chapter) as chairman; Calvin Hazelwood (Seedskadee Chapter —formerly Flaming Gorge/Lower Green River) as vice chair; Dave Sweet (East Yellowstone Chapter) as treasurer; Cole Sherard (Curt Gowdy Chapter) as secretary; and Jim Broderick (Jackson Hole Chapter) as National Leadership Council (NLC) representative and past chair.

“I’m excited and nervous at the same time,” said new WYTU Chair Mike

Jensen. “This is such a great organization with so many talented and passionate individuals around the state — volunteers and staffers alike doing incredible conservation and fisheries work in Wyoming.”

Jensen also presented awards to Jim Broderick, Dave Sweet and Kathy Buchner for their outstanding contributions made to WYTU as their two-year terms came to a close. An award was also presented to John Deakins, who resigned his NLC representative position in late February due to health reasons.

“I’d like to thank both Kathy and John for their dedicated service to the Wyoming Council of Trout Unlimited,” Jensen said. “Both individuals have served the council well for many years and all of us involved with WYTU wish

them both nothing but the very best.” The “Wyoming Trout Unlimited Bucking Fish Award” was formally presented to Jackson Hole Chapter President Darren Kleiman from members of the East Yellowstone Chapter. This award, which has quickly become a council tradition, was started by WYTU staffer Dave Glenn several years ago to honor WYTU chapters doing outstanding conservation work around the Cowboy State. Saturday’s annual meeting concluded and was followed by the first-ever, and sold out, “Tie One On” fundraising banquet that was also held at the Hotel Terra. Over 250 supporters attended the banquet and enjoyed a great evening that featured a variety of tasty food items and spirits, raffle prizes, silent and live auctions and live music. “What a great event,” said Wyoming Coordinator and banquet organizer Scott Christy. “We had wonderful

sponsors, a great banquet committee and group of volunteers that made this banquet a huge success. I can’t thank them enough for their outstanding contributions.”

Auction items at the event included a wide variety of incredible fishing trips, including an outstanding fly fishing trip for two to Patagonia that sold for over $14,000. Other auction items included firearms, artwork, gift baskets, fly rods and much more.

A special thanks to the sponsors of the banquet. The Premier Sponsor was Patagonia River Ranch; Silver Sponsors included Bill Egan and WorldCast Anglers, Jack Dennis High Country Outfitters, North State Environmental and Stantec Consulting Services, Inc.; and Bronze Sponsors included Bob Grady, Fay Ranches, Hotel Terra and Steve Bohl.

The annual meeting concluded Sunday with a training session on understanding stream restoration and consultants presented by David Bidelspach of Stantec Consulting Services, Inc.

TOP LEFT: Trout Unlimited North Platte River Project Manager Jeff Streeter goes through an exercise to find simulated aquatic invasive species (AIS) on a raft at the Jackson office of the Wyoming Game and Fish Department. He, along with several other Wyoming Trout Unlimited volunteers, successfully became AIS inspectors during an all-day training session in early May.

TOP RIGHT: Upper Bear River Chapter President Mark Tesoro, left, and WYTU NLC Representative and Past Chair Jim Broderick enjoyed a spectacular day of fishing on the Snake River.

CENTER: Jackson Hole Chapter banquet committee member Barb Allen, center, checks out the great spread of food at the fundraising banquet held Saturday night after the council’s business meeting. The sold out event was a huge success, and all proceeds raised will benefit the Wyoming Council of Trout Unlimited, the Jackson Hole chapter and the Yellowstone Lake Project.

LOWER RIGHT: East Yellowstone Chapter President Gregg Bierei, left, and vice president Birney Holberg, right, present the “WYTU Bucking Fish Award” award to Jackson Hole Chapter President Darren Kleiman during Saturday’s annual meeting. The award came complete with frosty beverages to help close out the business meeting.

WYTU PHOTOS/Mike Jensen and Mark Tesoro

photos

Page 4 SUMMER 2013

WYOMING coordinator REPORT provide for your chapter to help you move forward in the best possible fashion. Most chapters have something they can positively work on, and we’ve got good information on best board practices, TU online tools, chapter fundraising ideas, or running effective meetings that can help. Also, I can provide a facilitated session to assist you in chapter strategic planning if that seems like a better fit. If your chapter is interested, give me a ring and we’ll work together to schedule one of these sessions.

With all that said, I hope you’re enjoying the summer, and are out and about catching fish. I’ve seen some photos of proud fish coming off the Green and Platte lately and I’m certainly ready to go in the mountains near Lander and chase some fish on my own.

Scott Christy is the Wyoming Coordinator for Trout Unlimited. Originally from Iowa, Scott has an incredible passion for the outdoors — camping, hunting, fishing and whitewater rafting. Scott lives in Lander in order to foolishly chase golden trout in the high country of the Wind River Range all summer. He also pretends to bow hunt for big game in Wyoming, but really only brings home the occasional grouse. E-mail Scott at: schristy@tu.org.

Wyoming Trout Unlimited is proud to announce that we will be hosting the Second annual Trout Unlimited (TU) Teen Summit this summer, on July 27-31, in Kelly, Wyoming, on the beautiful campus of the Teton Science School.

This year’s TU Teen Summit is a chance for TU youth toÊmeet other TU teens from across the country, complete a service project tied to conservation in the Jackson area, and to get out on the water and fish.

Attendees will include over 30 teens from around the country who will have the opportunity to hear TU volunteers and staff discuss a range of project work, attend site visits, and guide the efforts of Trout Unlimited to better involve and include our future leaders.

Wyoming Trout Unlimited is also proud of our very own WYTU Youth Chair, Haley Capozza of Rock Springs, who is helping organize the event after attending the first teen summit held last year in Pennsylvania.

If you are interested in volunteering to help take kids fishing during the summit, please contact our Wyoming Coordinator, Scott Christy, at: schristy@tu.org or by calling (307) 332-7700 ext 12.

Trout Unlimited Teen Summit coming to Cowboy State

The first Trout Unlimited Teen Summit crew is pictured last year at the retreat in Pennsylvania. Note the WYTU Bucking Fish hat sported by the WYTU Youth Chair Haley Capozza.

COURTESY PHOTO/Trout Unlimited

From the vantage point of the Wyoming Coordinator, there have been plenty of things going on as we head into the summer of 2013. Some of them, such as Yellowstone Lake or our May fundraising event and council meeting, you’ll read about other places in this issue of The Trout Tale.

It’s an exciting time, with a women’s committee visioning meeting and the second-ever Trout Unlimited (TU) Teen Summit taking place in the Cowboy State this summer. In addition to all those events, there are a few other items that I’d highlight.

Firstly, the Casper-Grey Reef Chapter has recently reorganized, and is back on the scene in Casper and gaining momentum. We’re excited to have Grant Lawson at the helm steering that group as the chapter president.

Secondly, our Flaming Gorge/Lower Green River Chapter in the Rock Springs/Green River area recently voted to change its official name to the Seedskadee Chapter of Trout Unlimited. We just received word that the TU National Board approved the change in late June, so we’ll work up all the official documents and celebrate the Seedskadee Chapter having such a cool new name.

Thirdly, in the interest of serving our Wyoming TU members in the best possible fashion, we’ll be moving our at-large TU members in Wyoming with no current home chapter to the closest chapter available so they are at least getting some news of local fisheries conservation in Wyoming. This will mostly affect our membership in the northeast portion of the state where we don’t currently have an active chapter.

All that news aside, Wyoming TU continues to focus on strengthening our chapters at a local level. We’ve developed a number of training tools that I can

SUMMER 2013 Page 5

update

NEWS FROM THE NATIONAL LEADERSHIP COUNCILArdent readers of these pages will recognize this author’s name from his pre-

vious column, “Notes from the Chairman.”Yes, in my last article for that column I professed it would be my last since my term

as chairman of Wyoming Trout Unlimited came to an end at the conclusion of the 2013 annual meeting. My WYTU peers, however, saw fit to elect me to a new position — National Leadership Council (NLC) representative for Wyoming. I am honored that they have such support for and belief in me to elect me to such an esteemed position.

Now, unless you are an aficionado of all things Trout Unlimited (I can’t imagine who amongst you is not!), you are probably wondering what my new position entails. Allow me to explain with an analogy.

The chairman of WYTU is similar to the governor of Wyoming — they oversee all the TU members and their activities within Wyoming. By contrast, the NLC represen-tative is similar to a senator — they represent Wyoming’s interests at the national level. That seems pretty simple. The chairman works within Wyoming, while I work for Wyoming, as NLC representative, on the national scene. There are, of course, some other responsibilities, but that analogy sums it up nicely.

Allow me to provide you a more relevant example. WYTU has been working on the Save the Yellowstone Cutthroat project for a number of years. My predecessor realized

By DAVE SWEETYellowstone Lake Special ProjectManager for Wyoming Trout Unlimited

Yellowstone Lake – 2013 StrategyThe summer/fall lake trout (LT) suppression season on Yellowstone Lake

is shaping up to be a critical time period. After the 2012 season, where over 300,000 lake trout were removed, the Science Review Panel members believe that we may be on the cusp of a population crash.

Several indicators are pointing in the right direction. Netting suppression levels (the amount of netting effort) have exceeded the targeted amount and 2013 projections are for this to go even higher with three Hickey Brothers boats on the water.

The LT catch per unit effort declined last year for the first time in many years, which is indicative of declining numbers. The cutthroat by-catch and distribution netting, which are indicators of YCT population levels, increased

,and more one-and two-year-old cutthroats are being counted. The telemetry study that TU has raised money for is showing results. Seasonal LT movement patterns are being gleaned from the data, and six potential spawning beds have been identified.

During this summer and fall, telemetry will be increasingly utilized to guide the suppression. USGS scientists are right now putting together detailed month by month movement and fish concentration patterns which will be used to send the netters to specific areas of high LT use. In addition, VPS or fine scale positioning around suspected spawning beds in other parts of the lake will pinpoint this fall’s high use (spawning) areas. The one known spawning bed at Carrington Island will be the focus of what has been described as a “Berlin Wall” of gill nets this September to cut off recruitment on that spawning bed. Those LT that do get through will find a new electroshocking system ready to kill their eggs.

Scientists at Montana State University are busy designing this system and hope to test it at Carrington.

Trout Unlimited has been playing a major role in fundraising for these efforts and in aiding the coordination between the NPS and USGS scientists as they put together plans for 2013. Together we are all involved in the major goal of “Saving the Yellowstone Cutthroats” of the Yellowstone Lake system.

Dave Sweet has been a member of Trout Unlimited since the mid-70s. He is the recipient of the Distinguished Service Award from Trout Unlimited as well as former chairman of the Wyoming Council of Trout Unlimited. He currently is serving as the treasurer of the council and is a former president and current board member of the East Yellowstone Chapter in Cody. Dave and his wife, Cathy, are the parents of two daughters — Cindy, an attorney in Casper, and Diana, a fisheries biologist for the Wyoming Game & Fish Department in Jackson — and they live in Cody. Dave loves to fish for any species; hunt for whatever crawls, flies or walks; and ride his horses. E-mail Dave at: davidps@tritel.net.

the importance of that initiative not only to Wyoming but to the entire country, if not the world. He took that and parlayed it into a place on the National Conservation Agenda of TU national. This meant that our statewide and regional initiative became a national ini-

tiative, including all the expert and financial resources one might expect. It should be noted that there are only five items on the National Conservation Agenda. Elevating Yellowstone Lake to one of these five positions not only signifies the importance of the issue but is also a testament to the great work of my predecessor. I hope I can live up to such lofty standards.

While it may be unlikely that elevating such an important initia-tive will fall upon my shoulders, I do look forward to representing Wyoming within the national organization. In coming issues I’ll use this column to inform you of not only what I am doing to represent Wyoming, but also what the national organization is doing for all of you in Wyoming. Until then… Wishing you following breezes on every cast.

Jim Broderick serves as the National Leadership Council representative and Past Chair for the Wyoming Council of Trout Unlimited. He and his wife, Becky, along with their two dogs, Bear and

Cooper, and a pond full of Snake River cutthroat trout live in Jackson. Jim is the owner of Rocky Mountain Ranch Management and in his free time, he enjoys driving drift boats in search of epic fly fishing. E-mail Jim at: jim@rmrm.biz.

A pretty good number of Lake Trout are shown that were removed from Yellowstone Lake.

COURTESY PHOTO

Page 6 SUMMER 2013

WYTUCHAPTER CHATTER

Council vice chair and chapter

president Calvin Hazelwood

with a beautiful Snake River

cutthroat trout.

Tuesday Fishing Outing.”It’s basically a standing invitation for our

members and guests to meet at the Green River TU office on the third Tuesday of the month in the evening, see who shows up, and go fishing. Pretty simple. So far, we have fished Flaming Gorge, in town on the Green River, and Trout Creek. These have been fun for those who have attended, and give us another excuse to go fishing!

This summer, we are looking forward to working with the Wyoming Game & Fish Department, Seedskadee National Wildlife Refuge, Upper Bear River Chapter, and others on projects to benefit our fisheries here in

southwest Wyoming. We plan to continue our work on Red Creek, work on a joint monofilament recycling project with the Upper Bear River Chapter, and do some fishing. Our chapter meetings will reconvene in October, but we still plan to have some fun throughout the summer. Fishing has been great as of late on the Green River, and hopefully some of you have been able to get out and experience some of it. There is nothing like big fish on big

dries!Until next time, tight lines.

UPPER BEAR RIVER CHAPTERThe Upper Bear River TU chapter

wrapped up the spring and started this sum-mer with a bang.

After the success of our fundrais-ing banquet in the spring, the chapter turned around and topped it off with a great Kids Fishing Day. The second Saturday in June, always questionable for weather, turned out to be absolutely beautiful, and the crowds showed up en masse. The event, cosponsored by the Cowboy Bass Federation and Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife, had over 350 kids registered who received prizes and

fished. Our chapter fed over 550 people free lunch and wrapped up the event by 1 p.m..

Many families showed up with kids who had never fished before. They were given fishing rods and reels, bait or other prizes.

All of the work was made possible through the generous donations of local

businesses and individuals. We even had one of our great volunteers and chapter members, Tim Gorman, cooking up fish the kids had caught so they could eat it if they wanted. This is the sixth year we’ve hosted the event and we always get a ton of praise from the community. The kind words from sin-gle mothers, the thumbs ups and waves from grandpas, and the young kids smiling from ear to ear with their first fish, all make this event worth it.

The great team of volunteers work like a well-oiled machine to make the event come off without a hitch.

The chapter’s Fish Ladder project on the old City Diversion on the Bear River, recently received grant funding from the Wyoming Wildlife & National Resource Trust (WWNRT). After an onsite meeting with some of our TU board, city officials and Nick Walrath, the represen-tatives for the fund returned to vote at their biannual meeting held in Yellowstone. The members said they were very impressed with our efforts and planning, and consequently awarded us with $25,000 toward our project.

Our chapter also received $5,000 from the Wyoming Game and Fish for the project. If all goes as planned with permits and access easements, we hope to get going on the project this fall. Hats off to Nick and our very own Jim Hissong for their tremen-dous work on our grants.

With the sudden onslaught of hot weather, it seems our local/ regional water levels seem to be dwindling fast. Some of

our members have been hit-ting the water while the flows remain decent and been land-ing some out-standing fish. We’re crossing our fingers for the waters and

the fish this summer.On a final note,

Eli Tesoro of our chapter was selected to rep-resent the chapter at the Trout Unlimited Teen Summit in Jackson at the end of July. We look forward to a full report for this exciting opportunity for him.

SEEDSKADEE CHAPTER(Formerly Flaming Gorge/

Lower Green River Chapter)Greetings from the Seedskadee

Chapter!What, never heard of them? Well, the

Flaming Gorge/Lower Green River Chapter has changed our name to the Seedskadee Chapter. We have been discussing making a change, mostly to shorten up our name, and we recently held a chapter vote and are working on for-malizing our new name with National Trout Unlimited. We just received word that the name change was approved at TU national so we’ll work on a new logo and, who knows? Maybe even get some hats made! So, we went from a long name to one that is hard to spell — that figures!

We experienced some sad news within our chapter recently with the passing of our vice-president, Layne Capozza. Layne was a great guy and angler, and he and his family have been active members of our chapter for the last couple of years. He will be missed, and we valued his friendship and support of our chapter.

This past spring has been very busy for the chapter, and some of the events we have held or participated in are:

n Western Wyoming Community College Free Day

n Chapter Fishing Outings/Lying and Tying Events

n Second annual Fly Fishing Clinicn Take A Kid Fishing Dayn Hatching Box project

As you can see, the chapter members have been busy, with more events and projects to come throughout the summer.

None of these events would have been as successful as they were without the support and help of our chapter volunteer members. Thanks to all of them for helping out and supporting these events.

A new and fun event we are having

lately was started by our one and only Nick Walrath, local TU Green River Project Manager. Nick is spearheading our “Third

SUMMER 2013 Page 7

A stronghold for Colorado cutthroat trout — the other Henry’s Fork

ABOVE: A section of Beaver Creek that will be fenced off from grazing and undergo some channel restoration to improve trout habitat. TOP RIGHT: The Henry’s Fork drainage is located west of Flaming Gorge reservoir and flows through both Uinta and Sweetwater counties in Wyoming. MIDDLE RIGHT: A Colorado River cutthroat trout that was caught during a hoop-net survey of the Henry’s Fork above the People’s Canal diversion in April 2013.

COURTESY PHOTOS

By HILLARY WALRATHTrout Unlimited Salinity Control Project Coordinator for the Henry’s Fork of the Green River

Tucked away along the southwest border of Wyoming and Utah lies a relatively unknown river and tributary to the Green River — the Henry’s Fork. This mysterious water makes its start high in the Uinta Mountains at Henry’s Fork Lake, nestled below King’s Peak (the highest point in Utah, at 13,528 feet, for those of us who like trivia). It snakes down the north slope into Wyoming and ultimately enters Flaming Gorge Reservoir near Manila, Utah. Its major tributaries include Poison Creek, Beaver Creek and the Burnt Fork. Though this river may seem small in comparison to the Green, it is one of the few remaining strongholds for Colorado River cutthroat trout (CRC). Historically, CRC occupied the entire Henry’s Fork drainage, but are now isolated to high elevation tributaries. Other fish species of special concern that inhabit the Henry’s Fork include bluehead

sucker and flannelmouth sucker. Once the water from the Henry’s

Fork enters Flaming Gorge Reservoir, it makes a long journey via the Green River through Utah. There, it drains into the Colorado River and flows into Arizona, Nevada and California and empties into the Gulf of California in Mexico. The Colorado River is a vital source of water for the southwestern U.S. and Mexico, and roughly 36 million people rely on it for municipal, industrial and agricultural uses. As a result, the water quality of this river is a major concern. In the early 1970s, water users noticed a significant increase of salinity in the Colorado River. It is estimated that about half of

the salinity comes from natural sources, while the other half comes primarily from irrigation return flows. High water salinity can result in increased water treatment costs, increased pipe decay, lower crop yields and a multitude of other problems that annually amount to around $350 million in damages in the lower basin of the Colorado River. In 1974, Congress enacted the Colorado River Basin Salinity Control Act, which works to reduce and

prevent salts from dissolving into the river. High salinity areas were identified and control projects have been set in place. The Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) administers 11 in Wyoming, Colorado and Utah.

The combination of its high fisheries values and salinity contributions made the Henry’s Fork drainage a prime location for a unique partnership. Trout Unlimited and the NRCS teamed up to create a cooperative position for a salinity control project coordinator in the Henry’s Fork area. I was the lucky candidate chosen for this exciting new position in January 2013 to work with private landowners to improve irrigation efficiencies, which will increase crop yields and reduce labor and water requirements. These improvements will also reduce salt loading in the drainage.

Along with improving water quality, I will coordinate projects to enhance aquatic habitat for native fish species, reduce fish entrainment, promote fish passage and improve water availability. These projects will also work to augment riparian habitat for waterfowl and other associated species.

Currently, we are pursuing a project to protect the Henry’s Fork from future invasion of burbot from Flaming Gorge Reservoir by improving a diversion structure to be a permanent fish barrier near Manila, Utah. Through collaboration with a local landowner, Fish & Wildlife Service Partners Program and the Uinta County Conservation District, a portion of Beaver Creek will be fenced to protect the stream from over-grazing during critical times of the year for cutthroat trout. Stream channel restoration work will also improve fish habitat. Another ongoing project will pipe a major ditch to reduce salinity contributions and water lost through seepage and evaporation.

Hillary Walrath was hired on as TU’s Salinity Control Project Coordinator for the Henry’s Fork of the Green River in 2013. Hillary received her master’s degree in rangeland ecology and watershed management from the University of Wyoming in 2012. She lives in Green River with her spectacular husband Nick. She loves any excuse to be outside, and fills her free time with fishing, hunting, birding, hiking and fixing up their new home.

Page 8 SUMMER 2012

WYTUNEWS NOTES

Be a part of our success! Donate to WyomingTrout Unlimited today — 3 easy ways to donate!

YES! I support the Wyoming Council of Trout Unlimited’s efforts to protect and preserve Wyoming’s trout and their watersheds. Enclosed is my gift of: $35 $50 $100 $250 $1,000 Other ___________

1) Simply fill out the form below with your check or credit card information and mail to WYTU 2) Give over thephone by calling Scott Christy at (307) 332-7700 ext. 12 or 3) Donate online at www.wyomingtu.org/donate

With your donation of $100 or more,you’ll receive a great looking WYTU

“bucking fish” ball cap.

Name

Address

City State Zip

Phone e-mail

My check is enclosed Charge my: Visa MasterCard AMEX

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Mail this form to: WYTU, 250 North 1st Street, Lander, WY 82520.Contributions are tax-deductible to the full extent allowed by law. Please make checks payable to the Wyoming Council of Trout Unlimited.

Please be assured that WYTU never uses your e-mail address for anything other than WYTU business.

See WYTU NEWS NOTES, page 9

Flaming Gorge/Lower Green River Chapter changes name to Seedskadee Chapter

Members of the Flaming Gorge/Lower Green River Chapter in Rock Springs and Green River have voted to change the name of the chapter to the Seedskadee Chapter. The vote took place at the monthly chapter meeting held on June 6.

According to chapter president Calvin Hazlewood, the chapter wanted a shorter name. The name change was approved by the Organizational Development Committee of the Trout Unlimited Board of Trustees in late June at their board meeting.

The name Seedskadee originated from the Shoshone Indian word “Sisk-a-dee-agie” meaning “river of the prairie hen.” Thirty-six miles of the Green River passes through the 27,230-acre Seedskadee National Wildlife Refuge located northeast of the cities of Green River and Rock Springs.

Revitalized Casper-Grey Reef Chapterbuilding momentum; elects new officers

The newly-revitalized Casper-Grey Reef Chapter in Casper continues to gain momentum with recent elections of officers for the chapter. During the June 6 chapter meeting, Grant Lawson was elected chapter president, Kray Lutz was elected vice president, Adam Sarvey was elected as treasurer, and Luke Opitz was elected as secretary.

According to the newly-elected chapter officers, they plan on growing chapter membership over the summer and discuss potential project work.

“We are extremely excited about the Casper-Grey Reef Chapter’s recent election of officers,” said Wyoming Coordinator Scott Christy. “The chapter’s officers are an outstanding group of dedicated and passionate volunteers that are the right people, at the right time, to make this

revitalization of the chapter work, and work well. Kudos to Grant, Kray, Adam and Luke for stepping into these leadership roles.”

The next Casper-Grey Reef Chapter meeting will be held at the Diemer True Building in Casper at 7 p.m.

WYTU membership closesin on 1,700 members statewide

Wyoming Coordinator Scott Christy is pleased to announce that Trout Unlimited membership in Wyoming has grown to 1696 members. This number has grown substantially over the past several months.

“We’re are very pleased to see that membership is on the rise in Wyoming,” said Christy. “This goes to show that our work around the Cowboy State is important, and that people are recognizing our outstanding conservation efforts.

If you know of someone who is interested in becoming a member of Trout Unlimited, there is a fantastic introductory offer right now at: https://www.tumembership.org/member/intro.

The cost is only $17.50 for new members and if they select your chapter during the sign-up, $15 of that $17.50 will go directly back to your chapter at the end of the year. Also, right now you can sign up new female members for free. You can help Trout Unlimited grow and bring more voices into the conservation dialogue. For more information, go to: https://www.tumembership.org/women.

WYTU Fall meeting set forNovember 2 and 3 in Laramie

Wyoming Coordinator Scott Christy has announced that the Wyoming Council of Trout Unlimited will hold their fall meeting in Laramie on November 2 and 3.

“This is especially exciting, as it will be the first council meeting in the southeast part of Wyoming in a long time,” said Christy.

Christy noted that the dates were carefully selected so as to not interfere with a Wyoming Cowboys home football game. Christy also encouraged all WYTU members and staff to mark the dates on their calendars now.

More details on where the meeting will be held, motel

SUMMER 2013 Page 9

WYTUCALENDARWYTU NEWS NOTES, continued from page 8

WYTUNEWS NOTES

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JULY 18, 2013Casper-Grey Reef

Chapter meeting will be held at the Diemer True Building at 7 p.m.

JULY 26-27, 2013The Seedskadee

Chapter (formerly Flaming Gorge/Lower Green River Chapter) will complete their work on their Red Creek habitat project.

They will be improving habitat by anchoring trees and other structure in the stream to help improve cover for young fish. Red Creek contains one of the purest strains of Colorado cutthroat trout in Wyoming.

JULY 27-31, 2013The 2nd Annual Trout Unlimited Teen Summit will be

held in Kelly, Wyoming.Teens from across the country, including Wyoming, will

converge in the Jackson Hole area for youth leadership and conservation workshops, fly fishing outings, fly tying, learn more about Wyoming’s Adopt-A-Trout program, conduct a service project, take a field trip to Yellowstone Lake and much, much more.

AUGUST 9-11, 2013First-Ever Wyoming Trout Unlimited Women’s

Committee Retreat. Sinks Canyon Center in Lander, Wyoming.

For more information, contact Women’s Committee Chair Hillary Walrath at (307) 751-3621.

AUGUST 24, 2013First-Ever Cody Wildwest River Fest in Cody, Wyoming.

For more information tommy.thompson@tu.org.

SEPTEMBER 25-28, 2013The 2013 Trout Unlimited Women’s Retreat will be held

in Madison, Wisconsin.

SEPTEMBER 27-29, 2013The 2013 Trout Unlimited Annual National Meeting will

be held in Madison, Wisconsin.

NOVEMBER 2-3, 2013Fall council meeting in Laramie. This is the first time, in

a long time, that the Wyoming Council of Trout Unlimited will he holding a council meeting in the southeast part of the state.

Mark your calendars now as you won’t want to miss this fall event. Watch for more details coming through e-mail and the council’s social media outlets.

Do you have an item for “WYTU News Notes?”Send your information via e-mail to Scott Christy at: schristy@tu.org

or Mike Jensen at: mjensen@uintacountyherald.com

accommodations and meeting details will be provided as they become available. Watch for more exciting details coming soon.

WYTU Conservation Committee ready toassist chapters with Embrace-A-Stream grants

Wyoming Trout Unlimited (WYTU) Chairman Mike Jensen is pleased to announce that the council’s conservation committee is ready to help chapters around the Cowboy State with Embrace-A-Stream grants.

The committee, headed by Diana Miller of Jackson, is enthusiastic to offer assistance to those chapters who need help writing and preparing Embrace-A-Stream grants.

“Our conservation committee is made up of a group of talented individuals with a whole lot of expertise,” said Jensen. “In talking with Diana, the committee is eager to help out on this process that might be intimidating to those chapters that might not have a lot of grant writing experience.”

Embrace-A-Stream grants provide chapters with a great opportunity to apply for up to $10,000 in project funds from Trout Unlimited. The grants typically are submitted by early December, and Trout Unlimited officials usually announce recipients in early February.

Committee members include: Chair Diana Miller of Jackson, Jim States of Saratoga, Frank Bird of Worland, Jay Buchner and Jim Broderick of Jackson, Pat Newell of Green River, Laura Burckhardt and Dave Sweet of Cody, Shadd Johnstone of Evanston and Matt Stanton of Casper.

For more information on how members of the Conservation Committee can help with your Embrace-A-Stream grant process, contact Diana Miller via e-mail at: diana.miller13@gmail.com or diana.miller@wyo.gov.

Shotgun, fly rod, fly reel and flyline package valued at over $2,250.00!

Must be 18 years of age to enter. Need not be present to win. Winner will be responsible for any applicable sales tax,

registration and any other fees. WYTU is a nonprofit 501(c)3 organization and is tax-exempt.

Tickets Only...$20 each or 6 for $100

All proceeds go toward conserving and protecting Wyoming’s coldwater fisheries and

watersheds! Thank you for your support!

Here’s What You Will Win:• Remington VersaMax 12 Gauge Shotgun with Mossy Oak Duck Blind Camo • Sage Z-Axis 9’ 5 wt., 4-Piece Fly Rod

• Sage 3850 CF Fly Reel • Rio Gold Fly Line!

Call Scott Christy today to get your tickets! (307) 332-6700 ext. 12

Page 10 SUMMER 2012

See SCP OVERVIEW, page 11

an overviewBy DAVE GLENNTrout Unlimited Sportsmen’s ConservationProject Intermountain Regional Director

As most of you are aware, Trout Unlimited works to protect, restore, reconnect and sustain America’s coldwater fisheries. Within TU, the Sportsmen’s Conservation Project (SCP) helps lead the charge in protecting some of the best fish and wildlife habitat on public lands. Why do we do it? What do we do? How are we different? I’ll focus on these questions and, in the next newsletter issue, I’ll give some updates regarding what‘s happening in Wyoming.

Why we do it:The bottom line is habitat equals opportunity. Large, intact chunks of fish

and wildlife habitat on public lands mean better fishing, bigger bucks, bigger bulls and longer hunting seasons. In fact, 75 percent of Wyoming’s native cut-throat trout reside on public lands. This statistic shows the importance of mak-ing sure our public lands are managed to preserve these coldwater fisheries. Our goal is to make sure cool, clean, clear and fishable water will forever make its way downstream for the fish, the fishermen and the multiple users who rely on it.

What we do and how we do it: Throughout the West, the SCP works to educate, organize and mobilize

hunters and anglers, government representatives, businesses, landowners and industry to safeguard public lands known for their quality big game and fish habitat. SCP staffers are a diverse group of individuals with experience rang-ing from research and wildlife management to careers as loggers, roughnecks, outfitters and journalists. We all share a common passion for hunting and angling. We’re not scientists, we’re not attorneys, but rather we’re the guys and gals who know the resource, use the resource, and appreciate the resource.

We believe that the best way to promote our sporting tradition and

enhance it for future generations is to work at the local level, with the people and groups who benefit from, and need to share, the tremendous resources our public lands provide. In all our efforts, we urge the parties involved to acknowledge that habitat is the key to healthy populations of fish and wildlife and the sporting opportunities public lands provide.

We accomplish our goals by using sound science, enlisting the support of TU members such as you, local sportsmen and women, and by getting out in the wild to enjoy our public lands.

The SCP focuses on three main issues• Backcountry Protection:ÊKeeping healthy habitat intact ensures there

will be quality hunting and fishing opportunities in perpetuity. This could hap-pen through legislative land designations such as the Wyoming Range Legacy Act of 2009, which withdrew 1.2 million acres from oil and gas leasing. It could also happen through smaller administrative pushes such as Forest Service and BLM planning efforts.

• Responsible Off-Road Vehicle Use:ÊThe use of off-road vehicles (ORVs) on public land has grown dramatically over the last two decades. Some irresponsible use of these machines has alarmed hunters and anglers who have seen damaged habitat and diminished opportunities as a result. The SCP is working to engage the ORV community and cooperatively rein in the irresponsible use of ORVs in areas that provide quality habitat for fish and game.

• Responsible Energy Development:ÊOil and natural gas development has been one of the dominant uses of public lands in the west for the last dec-ade. The SCP is working with industry and sportsmen to ensure development is done in a manner that meets industry’s needs, and lets us access energy resources without seriously harming fish and game habitat.

How we’re different: We don’t have a parachute and we use a rifle. What this means is we don’t parachute into an issue with our guns-a-blazing and we don’t use a shotgun

The hardworking, passionate and fun-loving staff of the Trout Unlimited Sportsmen’s Conservation Project COURTESY PHOTO

SUMMER 2013 Page 11

By MIKE JENSENTrout Tales Editor

Charlie Card is all smiles as he holds a truly incredibleLahontan cutthroat trout he caught at Pyramid Lake in Nevada earlier this spring. It measured 36 inches long and weighed20-plus pounds. Charlie, along with other TU members from Wyoming, Utah and Nevada, had a great outing fishing Pyramid Lake and the Truckee River in March.

WYTU PHOTO/Calvin Hazelwood

Fly fishing’s ace in the holen Trout Unlimited staffer and good friend of Wyoming Trout Unlimited, Charlie Card, becomes member of Fly Fishing Team USA

tying career. However, it wasn’t until three years later that he discovered the secret of published and well-known tiers that had such beautiful and artistic heads on their flies.

“They weren’t using their mother’s sewing thread,” he said with his pat-ented and youthful grin.

That’s when he made his first visit to a fly shop, where he purchased a spool of 6/0 thread and some head cement. He left the shop with a list of flies to go home to tie, then return them for inspection by the shop’s owner. Charlie’s mom, Louise, pointed out at that time to the shop owner that “He spends all his free time at the vise. He might as well sell some of those flies.”

The next time Charlie visited the fly shop, he was asked to stay and go to work. According to Charlie, “That was the end of all hope for a normally pro-ductive life in the workforce.”

When Charlie was ready to turn 15 years old, he purchased an old, wooden drift boat that was written about in John Gierach’s popular fly fishing book Sex, Death and Fly fishing. At the time, the boat was owned by a Green River outfitter, and Charlie paid $800 and 30 dozen flies for the boat.

Once he got his driver’s license, he was asked to work summers on the Green River as a swamper and chef’s assistant. Not too long after that, at the age of 18, Charlie started a 17-year guiding career, where he thoroughly enjoyed being on the river nearly every day for work or play.

Over the years, Charlie has guided for Green River Outfitters, Flaming Gorge Resort and Spinner Fall Guide Service. He took a short break to move to Salt Lake City and work at Cabela’s in Lehi, Utah, but ended up returning to his beloved river where he has earned a reputation as one of the best guides on the river.

After bowing to peer pressure from FlyFishing Team USA members Lance Egan andDevin Olsen, Charlie decided to givecompetition fly fishing a try. His firstexposure to competitive fly fishing camewhen he served as judge at an event heldnear Vail, Colorado. It was there that Charlie

He’s an amazing husband, father and son. A genuine friend. An extraordinary fly fisherman and guide. An accomplished fly-tier. He’s a pas-sionate employee of Trout Unlimited, one of the newest members of the Fly Fishing Team USA, and he even has a cicada fly pattern named after him.

Meet Charlie Card. He’s Trout Unlimited’s Northeastern Utah Back Country Coordinator for the Sportsmen’s Conservation Project based out of Dutch John, Utah near the famed Green River. He’s been with TU since May

2011, and his primary focus has been his work on the proposed Million Pipeline Project and wild and scenic designation for the Green River, to establish permanent protection for the Green below Flaming Gorge Dam in northeastern Utah. “I love my job. I still don’t know why Trout Unlimited hired me,” said Card. “I work for a great crew and this position allows me to give back to the resource that’s been my livelihood for most of my life.” Charlie also pointed out that he loves working

with the staff and volunteers of Wyoming Trout Unlimited, and that Wyoming is one of his favorite states in which to fish.

Charlie was born in Payson, Utah, and grew up in the Uintah Basin of northeastern Utah in Vernal. Like most kids, he was introduced to fishing by his father, Lowell. He fondly recalls digging up worms at an early age to be used for bait.

When he was 11, he wanted to catch fish using flies. But not just any flies — he wanted to use flies that he had tied. To do so, he would travel to a nearby swamp and fields to collect furs from rabbits and muskrats. For hackle, he had plenty of chickens and turkeys in the yard to pester. Thus began Charlie’s fly-

See ACE IN THE HOLE,page 14

SCP OVERVIEW, continued from page 10

approach. We’re very focused on where we work. We use science and local input to determine specific circles on a map important to the fisheries and sportsmen and women of Wyoming.

Two of these areas include the Wyoming Range and Little Mountain. We hire local and credible sportsmen and women who are passionate about these places and are contributing members to the communities. We listen, we com-promise, we collaborate and we work with all stakeholders.

One of our foundation funders hit the nail on the head when he com-mented to an SCP staffer the other day, “The SCP of TU is one of the only conservation groups that works locally and will not complain about a specific county commissioner, government agency, individual, or industry represen-tative. Instead, they’ll reach out to them, invite them fishing and get a dia-

logue going. That’s what’s needed.” Lastly, we couldn’t do this without collaborative input and support from

members such as you. Many of the SCP’s larger campaign areas were initial ideas from local volunteers. While science helps determine many of the areas we should and shouldn’t work, TU volunteers are the ground-truthers. You are the eyes and ears. You help us better understand the local issues, where we should focus, and where we shouldn’t focus. You are also instrumental in helping us to organize and mobilize people and communities to protect a spe-cific resource.

We’ve made a lot of headway in Wyoming and we have a ways to go. I will say by combining devoted volunteers with professional staff we’re becoming an organized, pragmatic and balanced voice in Wyoming.

Page 12 SUMMER 2012

Figure 9

Restoring the Encampment River School Section

See ENCAMPMENT RIVER, page 13

By JIM STATESPlatte Valley Chapter President

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

WYTUCHAPTERSPOTLIGHT

In 2011, the recently re-formed Platte Valley Chapter of Trout Unlimited made a bold decision to take on its first major stream restoration project. The chosen project was to restore a degraded portion of the blue-ribbon Encampment River, highly prized as the only portion of that river in the lower Encampment Valley open to wade-fishing. This seemed the ideal project from the chapter’s perspective because of upstream work already being undertaken by Jeff Streeter, TU North Platte

River Project Manager and other project partners. The chapter has made an initial commitment of $6,000 from its own resources to the project, and recently collaborated with the Wyoming Game and Fish Department (WGFD) in submitting a proposal to the Wyoming Lands Conservation Initiative for $80,000 of an estimated $500,000 in total project costs, with construction beginning in 2014 and possibly extending over several years.

Due to a variety of factors (sudden decrease in stream gradient at the mouth of the Encampment River Canyon just above the town of Riverside, livestock impacts on streambanks, historical tie drives upstream, dredging and channelization) the river in the Encampment River Valley is highly unstable with long stretches of bank erosion (Figure 1), extensive mid-channel and transverse bar development, and channel degradation and deposition (Figure 2). The Cheyenne Stage I/II Water Project, climate change and altered stream flow regimes caused by extensive beetle kill in forested headwaters may exacerbate

the instability if channel conditions are not restored. The instability is causing considerable agricultural land loss and difficulties maintaining fences and managing livestock. The channel degradation is lowering the water table and leading to a decrease in

deep-rooted native riparian vegetation. The unstable channel and streambanks have led to degraded riverine habitat for aquatic species, and diminished riparian habitat for both amphibious and terrestrial species.

The ultimate goal is to utilize state-of-the-art technologies to decrease bank erosion and stabilize the river so that it more efficiently moves the “bed-load” of sediments

originating upstream through the Encampment Valley (Figure 3), all the way to Rainbow canyon at the foot of the valley and thence to the North Platte River. Work is already underway on the upper end of the valley while the proposed project would initiate work on the lower end. Lands surrounding the school section and Rainbow Canyon are known as the “Baggot Rocks” area, a mix of both private and Bureau of Land Management (BLM) lands that are identified by BLM as an Area of Critical Environmental Concern (ACEC) due to its importance as critical mule deer winter range. Declines in the local mule deer herd are of such concern that the Wyoming Game and Fish Department has undertaken an extensive Platte Valley Mule Deer Initiative, with a

key component — the Platte Valley Habitat Improvement Plan —aimed at enhancing and restoring mule deer habitat. It is intended that the proposed work on and along the river will be integrated with upland habitat improvement projects, such that the sum of projects being undertaken could become a demonstration of what can be accomplished when all interests — fisheries, mule deer, and livestock — are addressed at a landscape scale.

Recent damage had so threatened public roads and access at

the upstream end of the School Section (Figure 4, “Before”) that it was necessary for WGFD, with a small contribution from Trout Unlimited, to initiate a rapid response prior to the initiation of work on the entire School Section (Figure 5, “After”). This illustrates the urgency of the proposed work in the remainder of the School Section following the ravages by two record flood years in 2010 and 2011.

The WGFD contracted with Stantec Consulting Services, Inc., out of Fort Collins, Colorado, to conduct an engineering survey and develop conceptual design options for the approximately 4,500-foot river School Section in the spring of 2013 as the necessary first step toward initiating restoration activities on the entire section in the spring of 2014. Stantec is a national leader in river and wetland restoration projects throughout North America, including a large number of projects focused on restoring fish and wildlife habitat in the western U.S. Stantec’s proprietary software integrates with AutoCAD and GIS systems to generate precise three-dimensional surfaces for stream design, allowing them to optimize the designs to within fractions of an inch and reduce construction costs. The results of their assessment (Figure 6)

photosSUMMER 2013 Page 13

Figure 5

Figure 6

Figure 7

Figure 8

Figure 10

Figure 1: Example of a portion of the School Section reach of the Encampment River showing severe erosive bank degradation and aggradation of sediments causing wide, shallow reaches and the formation of undesirable meanders. Figure 2: A portion of the School Section of the Encampment River revealing extensive mid-channel and transverse bar development, channel widening, degradation and deposition. Figure 3: Aerial view of Encampment River Valley showing proposed stabilization sections, including the ongoing pilot project #2 and the proposed School Section reach #7. Figure 4: Damaged portion of the Encampment River at the upstream boundary of the School Section before emergency repairs were undertaken. Figure 5: Damaged section after emergency repairs and

measures, were taken to facilitate regeneration of willows and other riparian vegetation. Figure 6: Stantec draft conceptual design basis for restoration of upper Encampment River school section restoration. Figure 7: Portion of the Encampment River just downstream of Riverside, Wyoming, prior to restoration pilot project. Figure 8: Restoration work underway on Encampment River just below Riverside Wyoming. Figure 9: Improved riffle-pool-run configuration and bank slopes redirecting flow to stream center on Encampment River pilot project just below Riverside, Wyoming. Figure 10: Showing willow clumps inserted to speed riparian habitat regeneration on reconfigured section of the Encampment River below Riverside, Wyoming.

COURTESY PHOTOS

provide the basis for a detailed engineering design for stream restoration and stabilization.

1) repair and stabilize the only portion of this blue-ribbon trout stream that is accessible for wade-fishing to the general public downstream of the town of Riverside, (2) improve streambank stability by decreasing the channel width/depth ratio, (3) improve channel pattern, increasing fish spawning success, and juvenile rearing and adult refuge habitat, especially during periods of low flow, (4) decrease adjacent land loss from excessive erosion, (5) improve utilization and rest/rotation of grazing

lands adjacent to the riverbed, and (6) increase habitat for mammals, birds, and amphibians.

Details of the School Section project will also be based upon lessons learned from restoration work nearing completion on a 4,300-

foot project on the Encampment River immediately downstream from the town of Riverside. That portion of the river was also hard-hit by the 2010-11 floods (Figure 6). Restoration work on that section is shown in Figure 7 and the resulting, more desirable, riffle-pool-run configuration is shown before bank revegetation

(Figure 8) and after (Figure 9). Like the School Section, this upstream project was under the joint sponsorship of WGFD and Trout Unlimited, along with other partners. Experience gained in designing, estimating costs, and conducting this upstream pilot

project is now directly applicable but will be adapted to the School Section project.

ENCAMPMENT RIVER, continued from page 12

Anticipated benefits of the project include:

(1) Restructuring of the river channel to prevent further degradation in critical areas and establish a better pool-riffle-run configuration with flow directed to the center to more effectively move the sedimentary bed-load during bank-full flows through the Section to

Rainbow Canyon where natural constraints will help move that load all the way through to the North Platte River which can better handle the load. Erosion of stream-side pastures will be greatly reduced. Stream-side gradients and hazards will be reduced, making wade-fishing this already highly-

prized fishing section an even more enjoyable experience. Measures have

already been taken by the WGFD to secure public access to the upper end of this section and to provide the signing needed for the public to understand their rights and responsibilities.

(2) Significantly improving pool depth and pool-riffle-run ratios to create better fish habitat in an already highly productive (though now degraded) section of the river, including actions to speed the regeneration of willows and other riparian vegetation that provide streamside cover and added stability to newly established riverbanks.

(3) Collaboration with federal, state, and private landowners is ongoing to develop a long-term strategy promoting re-establishment of stream-side riparian vegetation through wise use of fencing and rest-rotation between upland and lowland areas. As part of this collaboration, it is intended that mule deer habitat improvement projects will be undertaken in adjacent uplands of the Baggot Rocks mule deer winter range. For example, the scarcity of water could be mitigated in upland areas by drilling one or more wells to supply watering stations for cattle when riparian areas are being rested and serve as a water source for revegetation efforts benefitting both mule deer and livestock

had the opportunity to meet anglers from around the world, as well as see how competitive angling worked.

“I remember watching the angler I was judging for,” Card recalled. “I scratched my head wondering why the guy did what he did. He kept walking through excellent water and habitat without fishing it. It was definitely a learn-ing experience.”

Charlie decided to try out for Fly Fishing Team USA at the regional event held in Reno, Nevada in 2012. It was at that event that Charlie placed fourth and qualified for the national event that was held in Bend, Oregon in early October 2012.

The competi-tion was stiff, but Charlie rose to the occasion and placed third to earn a bronze medal and a spot on the cov-eted 15-person U.S. team. He also narrowly missed making the six-person team that will

INSIDE THIS ISSUE:

Skill at the riverside, or at the fly-table, never came, nor ever will come to us by any road than that of practice.

— George M. Kelson“

ACE IN THE HOLE, continued from page 11

represent the United States inAugust of this year at the worldchampionships in the VesfnaRegion in Norway.

His third place finish alsoqualified Charlie for the 2013 national competition that will take place at Basalt, Colorado in early October of this year.

“It would be pretty cool to make the world championship team,” said Card. “I’m still learning, though. I still don’t understand fully the scoring sys-tem used in competition.”

That’s Charlie’s humility for you. Don’t kid yourself, the guy knows all things fly fishing, and he can do it all — fly fish, drive a drift boat, guide, tie flies, teach and more. Much, much more.

He’s a rare breed in the fly fishing world. He’s always at ease, and has a terrific sense of humor. And if you’re lucky enough to fish or spend time with Charlie, you’ll see what I’m talking about. He has great stories and fond memories that he’s always willing to share with anyone who will listen.

But with Charlie, it goes well beyond his province of fly fishing. He’s a family man who loves spending time with his lovely wife, Shirley, and his three kids — sons Dylan and Jordan, and daughter Truly. He always gets that familiar boyish grin, and beams with pride when the conversation turns to his family.

TU is lucky to have such a wonderful employee and ambassador, and I’m lucky to be able to call Charlie my friend.

For more information on the Fly Fishing Team USA, go to their website

at: www.ffteamusa.com.

“

WYOMING TROUT UNLIMITED250 North 1st Street

Lander, Wyoming 82520

n WYTU and Jackson Hole Trout Unlimited first-ever fundraising banquet and annual meeting a huge success!

n TU Staffer earns coveted spot on Fly Fishing Team USA

n Platte Valley Trout Unlimited Chapter features great conservation project

n Wyoming to host 2nd Annual Trout Unlimited Teen Summit in Kelly, Wyoming

n Much, much more!